American Idol (season 2)
The second season of American Idol premiered on January 13, 2016. This season is hosted by Ryan Seacrest. Regional Auditions Auditions were held in New York, Miami, Los Angeles, Portland, Baltimore, Kansas City, Houston, and Charlotte. Hollywood week The Hollywood rounds of the audition process were held over four days in November 2015 at the Orpheum Theatre in Los Angeles. The first round consisted of each contestant singing one song a capella of their own choosing in front of the judges and all the other contestants. Contestants were then told whether they were moving on or going home, in groups of six. This extended over the first two days. The second round took place on the second and third day, and consisted of groups of three or four contestants choosing, rehearsing, and then performing one of nine pre-selected songs. Groups were reviewed and contestants were then judged individually as to whether they were moving on or going home. The third round took place on the fourth day, and consisted of individual contestants performing a song from a pre-selected list, accompanied by a piano and backup singers. Contestants were again informed of whether they had made the cut or not. Green mile The final pre-audience voting cut down took place at the Pasadena Civic Center on January 11 or 12, 2016, just before the regional audition shows began airing. Without any further auditioning, but possibly with some audience research having taken place, the 40 remaining contestants were reduced to 24. In a process taking a whole day, contestants wait in a sitting room until one by one, they go up an elevator and take a long walk to the other end of the Center's Gold Room. Then the three judges told them whether they have made it onto the stage show or are cut. The 24 semi-finalists were announced February 11, 2016. Semi-finals The semi-finals began on February 16, 2016. There were three shows each week for the three weeks of the semi-finals. The semi-finals featured the contestants (24 total) divided by gender with the 12 male singers singing on Tuesdays and the 12 female singers on Wednesdays. Each person had the chance to select a song to sing live in front of the judges. Following the show's airing, each U.S. timezone would have two hours to vote by phone or by text-messaging. On Thursday, the two of each group with the fewest votes were eliminated each week until the finals. Semi-finalists Females *'Averie Minogue', 18 years old, auditioned in Kansas City, and currently resides in Minneapolis, MN. *'Victoria Coleman', 24 years old, auditioned in Houston, and currently resides in Marrero, LA. *'Callie Canova', 21 years old, auditioned in Kansas City, and currently resides in Atlanta, GA. *'Madison Buckley', 16 years old, auditioned in New York City, and currently resides in Annapolis, MD. *'Alyson Jansky', 22 years old, auditioned in Miami, and currently resides in Brookhaven, MS. *'Yaretzi Faulkner', 27 years old, auditioned in Los Angeles, and currently resides in Portland, OR. Males *'Kolton Powell', 19 years old, auditioned in Los Angeles, and currently resides in Anaheim, CA. *'Sean Rosen', 27 years old, auditioned in Kansas City, and currently resides in Independence, MO. *'Calvin Richardson', 20 years old, auditioned in New York City, and currently resides in New York, NY. *'Jake Russell', 16 years old, auditioned in Kansas City, and currently resides in Omaha, NE. *'Mike Velez', 24 years old, auditioned in Portland, and currently resides in Inglewood, CA. *'Spencer Nokes', 19 years old, auditioned in Baltimore, and currently resides in Patricksburg, IN. 'Top 24' Theme: 60s Females Males 'Top 20' Theme: 70s Females Males 'Top 16' Theme: 80s Females Males Finals Finalists The 12 finalists were announced on March 3, 2016. As in past years, the top 12 will appear on the annual compilation album while the top 10 will be the participants in the American Idol summer concert tour. Also as in past years, one finalist was eliminated every week until the final two, where one will be declared the winner. The following is first in reverse chronological order by elimination date, then in alphabetical order by family name, where applicable. *'Alexandra Serrano', 22 years old, auditioned in New York City, and currently resides in Hickory Hills, IL. *'Cassie Wilkerson', 18 years old, auditioned in Los Angeles, and currently resides in Fresno, CA. *'Cassius Reynolds', 26 years old, auditioned in Los Angeles, and currently resides in Post Falls, ID. *'Clay Shelton', 28 years old, auditioned in Portland, and currently resides in Hamilton, MT. *'Jason Cuevas', 23 years old, auditioned in Charlotte, and currently resides in Duluth, GA. *'Marcus Cady', 25 years old, auditioned in Charlotte, and currently resides in Gatesville, NC. *'Myles Manning', 20 years old, auditioned in Los Angeles, and currently resides in Denver, CO. *'Natalie McConnell', 21 years old, auditioned in Houston, and currently resides in Clarksville, AR. *'Paige Frampton', 24 years old, auditioned in Miami, and currently resides in Meigs, GA. *'Sam Colston', 28 years old, auditioned in Baltimore, and currently resides in Chicago, IL. *'Saren Stevens', 17 years old, auditioned in Los Angeles, and currently resides in Phoenix, AZ. *'Sasha Burson', 21 years old, auditioned in Houston, and currently resides in Mountain View, WY. Top 12 – 1990s Elimination chart Note: Bottom 2 indicates that the contestant was 'saved' last. This may or may not indicate his or her actual vote rank. Sometimes, Seacrest will announce that the contestant is in the bottom 2, sometimes he will not.